The Nigerian Institute of Social and Economic Research (NISER), Ibadan, has held an exit presentation in honour of Prof. Gbenga Sunmola, who has just completed his twelve-month sabbatical fellowship at the Social Policy Department of the Institute.
The event, which took place at the Institute’s Seminar Room, on Wednesday 23rd September, 2026, was attended by the Director-General, Prof. Antonia Simbine and NISER staff.
In her opening remarks, Prof. Simbine said the core duty of researchers is knowledge sharing to proffer solutions to societal challenges. She commended Prof. Sunmola for his diligence and the value he has added to the Institute since his resumption on October 1, 2025.
According to the DG, NISER started its Sabbatical Fellowship programme in the 1980s and restructured it in 2021. Since the restructuring, only four fellows have been engaged to strengthen the Institute’s qualitative research capacity.
She also lauded Prof. Sunmola for his brilliant inaugural lecture delivered a fortnight ago at the University of Ibadan, and for opening a window for collaboration between NISER and the Oyo State Government, as well as his contributions during the Management Retreat and at the Social Policy Department.
In his presentation titled, “NISER Sabbatical Reflections: Contributions, Learning and Collaborations,” Prof. Sunmola outlined his achievements in five key areas:
Mentorship of postgraduate interns and NYSC members on research methodology and data gathering; Policy and Institutional Engagement, including analysis of Federal Appropriation Bills and contributions to seminars on cross-border migration and other socio-economic issues; Capacity building for staff on questionnaire design, measuring and mapping public attitudes for policy design, and intervention policy evaluation; Research outputs on Nigeria’s 2026 Budget, social protection implementation, and technology-facilitated gender-based violence; and the initiation of the NISER–Oyo State Government collaboration.
Sharing lessons from his stay, Prof. Sunmola noted that research must be policy-relevant, evidence must be translated, behaviour matters, and multidisciplinary collaboration is key.
He described the future of NISER as limitless and recommended expansion of government partnerships, institutionalized capacity development, enhanced global visibility of NISER’s work, and sustenance of collective celebration of achievements.
The presentation was followed by an interactive question-and-answer session, where staff commended Prof. Sunmola and sought his insights on effective communication between NISER and government for funding and uptake of research recommendations.
In his closing remarks, the Director of Research Management Department, Prof. Adeoti, expressed delight at Prof. Sunmola’s hard work and contributions, noting that he would reap the seeds he has sown in the Institute.
The event climaxed with a group photograph.
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